On Wednesday, the International Cricket Council (ICC) named the big-hitting batter Suryakumar Yadav T20I Player of the Year. ICC described him as the backbone of India’s middle order who got starts throughout the year. Taking home the award for the second time in a row, he made several match-winning contributions.
After a fantastic 2023 season, he emerged as Full Member nations’ top run-scorer. He started slow with his first match of the year scoring just seven runs against Sri Lanka. However, in the next two matches, he scored 51 (36) and 112 not out (51). With the passing matches, he emerged as a much stronger player as he participated in 17 T20I innings. He scored 733 runs at 48.86, including five half-centuries, and two centuries by maintaining his strike rate of 155.95.
His last match in 2023 was against South Africa as he scored 100 (56). Adding to his feathers, he was also handed the captaincy of the T20I when Sharma opted out of the captaincy and Pandya was injured. He was considered a good choice as he led India to a 4-1 victory against Australia.
